�Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's uses crutches to walk to his table after speaking at a a luncheon following his second inauguration in Sacramento, Calif., Friday, Jan. 5, 2006.(AP Photo/Steve Yeater,Pool)

Can't beat the irony of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger breaking his leg just as he's preparing to make health care reform a centerpiece of his second term.

So what will it cost to make the governor whole again? Hard to say exactly, but Linda Burt, chief financial officer at the 330-bed St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica -- where Schwarzenegger spent five days and underwent surgery for his skiing injury -- says her hospital typically charges anywhere from $6,500 to $9,500 a day for basic room and care.

Then come the thousands of dollars for X-rays, lab procedures, physical therapy and medical supplies such as crutches.

And the doctor bills, which in Schwarzenegger's case meant the services of at least one orthopedic surgeon and an anesthesiologist -- each of whom probably billed the governor or his insurer several thousand dollars apiece.

Put it all together, according to hospital consumer data collected by the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development, and St. John's charges patients with third-party insurance an average of $16,461 a day. Those belonging to HMOs pay $10,966 a day.

Rough it out, and a conservative estimate of the cost of treating Arnold's broken leg would be $55,000 -- more than what it takes to send a student to the University of California for two years.

What we know from eyewitnesses is that when the mayor arrived from a holiday party to comfort the fallen officer's family late that Friday night, he was very upset -- and he had been drinking.

"Was he staggering drunk? No. But you could smell it on him, and you could see it on him," said one witness who asked not to be named because like just about everyone else in the room, he still has to work with Newsom.

"He was very, very emotional, almost to tears -- asking how this could have happened," the witness said. "He was hugging people -- maybe a little too long for comfort -- and kissing them on the head."

Others who were there tell much the same story.

When Newsom arrived, much of the police command staff was already at the hospital. There were also a number of officers inside and out.

One account making the rounds has Newsom angry over the big police presence, complaining that it could create a "PR nightmare."

"I didn't hear or see anything like that," said our witness. "He was more upset about the officer being killed than anything else."

There are also accounts floating around of the mayor posing for a picture with some of the hospital staff.

He did.

He did not, however, stick around for the news conference by Police Chief Heather Fong at which she announced that Tuvera had died.

Newsom spokesman Peter Ragone, who was with the mayor, had no comment on whether the mayor had been drinking. As for Newsom's behavior at the hospital, Ragone said, "He's a very emotional guy."

Ragone said the mayor had not driven himself to S.F. General.

It's not the first time that Newsom has been spotted after hours at least one sheet to the wind. On the other hand, he's also hardly the first politico to knock back a few once he's out of the office.

"In a way, I feel for the guy," said one person who was at the hospital that night. "It's one of those damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don't situations. If he hadn't shown up, people would have talked. And if he showed, people were going to talk as well."

But as Newsom is finding out, emergencies and tragedies don't necessarily follow the clock.

Break out the pads: The 49ers' planned move to Santa Clara has triggered a flurry of behind-the-scenes maneuvers from Sacramento to Washington, D.C., with both sides muscling up for the rumble.

The Niners just hired Steve Schmidt, the political brains behind Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's re-election campaign, to help dodge some of the bullets headed their way -- most notably, legislation by state Sen. Carole Migden, D-San Francisco, that would prevent city governments from luring away NFL teams from within a 100-mile radius.

If passed -- and that is still very much up in the air -- Migden's bill would require the signature of Schmidt's former client, the governor.

Schmidt isn't the only new face on the Niners' team.

Sacramento lobbyist Kevin Sloat has also signed on to help work the hallways at the Capitol.

And just to keep the big mo moving down south, the Niners have also hired Jude Barry, a former aide to ex-San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales and consultant to Steve Westly's 2006 campaign for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination.

The team has also signed Peninsula consultant Ed McGovern, plus a public relations consortium that includes the firm of Fleishman-Hilliard -- the same outfit from which two Los Angeles executives were recently convicted of padding bills to the city's Department of Water and Power by more than $300,000.

Up in San Francisco, Mayor Gavin Newsom's office is under a self-imposed gag order. But we're told that every idea, communication and press release regarding the Niners coming out of the office is being vetted by none other than Sen. Dianne Feinstein.

EXTRA! Looking for a few laughs, some more inside info? Check out the Matier & Ross Web page this week at www.SFGate.com/matierandross. Read the Extra, Extra musings and insights of friends including Rich "Big Vinny" Lieberman and The Chronicle's Carla Marinucci and Don "Bad Reporter" Asmussen.